RUN: 6.5 miles in 55 mins.
I was feeling last night's TT in today's run. Oof, no power in the legs! I kept up with the group for 3.3 miles then lost them in the hills along the zoo. I still kept a good pace of about 8:30 m/m, so while not terribly disappointed I'm realizing that I have some adapting to do.
On top of all that, next week is the start of summer speedwork, meaning back-to-back-to-back hard workouts in the middle of the week. Sweet!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Wednesday swim
SWIM: 2000y in 50 mins. Cut short by 200y. WU was 1x400 swim, 1x200 pull, 1x200 kick. MS was 2x {25oy at 75%, 150y at 85%, 100y at 90%}. CD was 4x50.
For the 3rd day in a row I woke up to a headache, specifically the process of going horizontal to vertical induced a headache. I'm not sure what's causing it, but I can think of a few possibilities. First, I could be dehydrated- I learned last year that chronic dehydration is a reality. Second, the swimming could lead to tight neck musles. Third, sitting at a desk for most of my day could lead to tight neck and shoulder muscles. Finally, just plain stress.
For the 2nd swim in a row, my swimming was of poor form. It just didn't feel strong through the shoulders, didn't feel fluid, and left me tired and tight. So whether the swim is causing the head/shoulder issues or whether it's the other way around is unknown, but they are likely connected.
For the 3rd day in a row I woke up to a headache, specifically the process of going horizontal to vertical induced a headache. I'm not sure what's causing it, but I can think of a few possibilities. First, I could be dehydrated- I learned last year that chronic dehydration is a reality. Second, the swimming could lead to tight neck musles. Third, sitting at a desk for most of my day could lead to tight neck and shoulder muscles. Finally, just plain stress.
For the 2nd swim in a row, my swimming was of poor form. It just didn't feel strong through the shoulders, didn't feel fluid, and left me tired and tight. So whether the swim is causing the head/shoulder issues or whether it's the other way around is unknown, but they are likely connected.
Weds Night Time Trial
BIKE: 17 miles in about 55mins. 9 mile TT in 25:27.
The first Weds Night TT of the year for me! I love TT'ing, me against the clock and nothing to focus on but the road ahead and the burn in your legs. There was a strong perpendicular cross wind from the south. Going east was hard and I lost a lot of energy there, took 13.75 minutes! But the way back seemed to have less wind and I managed a negative split on the way home.
I did this same series last year and I started in early June with a 26 min time. Over the course of the summer I reduced to a PR of 24:31. So it's great that I'm starting off ahead of last year's times! :-)
The TT is unique for me in that I can blow it all out just biking with no reserving energy for a later run, and I'm not warmed up from the swim. So the first mile is a high HR, breathless sprint to get rolling. The next few miles I try to find a pace. And by about the 4th mile I'm settled in and warmed up.
I don't take the TT too seriously. I don't have a skin suit, shoe covers, aero helmet, or aero wheels. And I wonder just how much I'd gain from having such equipment? A few seconds, a minute? I've always thought that if I wanted to improve my times I'd work on Me, not my equipment, and that's sort of where I stand on that still. But, JM pointed out this morning that since we aren't going to Germany, we'll be in town for the Missouri State TT Championships! I missed it last year for the NY trip and this year I'd love to do it!
The first Weds Night TT of the year for me! I love TT'ing, me against the clock and nothing to focus on but the road ahead and the burn in your legs. There was a strong perpendicular cross wind from the south. Going east was hard and I lost a lot of energy there, took 13.75 minutes! But the way back seemed to have less wind and I managed a negative split on the way home.
I did this same series last year and I started in early June with a 26 min time. Over the course of the summer I reduced to a PR of 24:31. So it's great that I'm starting off ahead of last year's times! :-)
The TT is unique for me in that I can blow it all out just biking with no reserving energy for a later run, and I'm not warmed up from the swim. So the first mile is a high HR, breathless sprint to get rolling. The next few miles I try to find a pace. And by about the 4th mile I'm settled in and warmed up.
I don't take the TT too seriously. I don't have a skin suit, shoe covers, aero helmet, or aero wheels. And I wonder just how much I'd gain from having such equipment? A few seconds, a minute? I've always thought that if I wanted to improve my times I'd work on Me, not my equipment, and that's sort of where I stand on that still. But, JM pointed out this morning that since we aren't going to Germany, we'll be in town for the Missouri State TT Championships! I missed it last year for the NY trip and this year I'd love to do it!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Tuesday brick; bad news for Worlds
BIKE: ~25 miles in 90 minutes. 14 x 3.5 mins at 75% with 30s rest.
RUN: about 30 mins after bike, 5.25 miles in 50 mins.
I woke up with a headache, probably the same one I had yesterday. Some coffee and some water helped a little, but by the time I got to the run I was pretty wiped. The run was supposed to have 25-30mins of increased effort but the entire thing felt high effort. I was able to keep going and never had to stop, but it just never flowed or felt smooth. Much like yesterday's swim, my form felt off.
Today is the last day I can register for Worlds, and the way it's looking now I'm not going. I'm dragging it out as far as I can, I guess. The TeamUSA arm warmers arrived in the mail Monday and they look nice, but now it seems weird to be wearing them. There's an unspoken rule that if you DNS a race, you can't wear the t-shirt unless you mark them DNS with a big black marker. I was a part of TeamUSA, even if on paper. In this case, I'll have to mark them DNR, for Did Not Register. :-(
Surprisingly, I have mixed feelings about missing worlds. Part of me regrets that I'll miss out on what might be a unique opportunity. I can't really say for sure that I'll be able to qualify again, but who knows. At the same time, given the circumstances from Redman and the small age group I was in, I can't help but feel that I was just a lucky athlete who didn't so much earn the slot on TeamUSA, but rather I was just an athlete in the right race at the right time. I really don't feel like I earned the right to race at Worlds. The guys I was traveling with earned their slots, they are great athletes in tough age groups. I was never convinced of that on my part.
So it's sad, too bad, oh well. I have IMWI to prepare for, and if I had to pick between the two I'd pick IMWI.
RUN: about 30 mins after bike, 5.25 miles in 50 mins.
I woke up with a headache, probably the same one I had yesterday. Some coffee and some water helped a little, but by the time I got to the run I was pretty wiped. The run was supposed to have 25-30mins of increased effort but the entire thing felt high effort. I was able to keep going and never had to stop, but it just never flowed or felt smooth. Much like yesterday's swim, my form felt off.
Today is the last day I can register for Worlds, and the way it's looking now I'm not going. I'm dragging it out as far as I can, I guess. The TeamUSA arm warmers arrived in the mail Monday and they look nice, but now it seems weird to be wearing them. There's an unspoken rule that if you DNS a race, you can't wear the t-shirt unless you mark them DNS with a big black marker. I was a part of TeamUSA, even if on paper. In this case, I'll have to mark them DNR, for Did Not Register. :-(
Surprisingly, I have mixed feelings about missing worlds. Part of me regrets that I'll miss out on what might be a unique opportunity. I can't really say for sure that I'll be able to qualify again, but who knows. At the same time, given the circumstances from Redman and the small age group I was in, I can't help but feel that I was just a lucky athlete who didn't so much earn the slot on TeamUSA, but rather I was just an athlete in the right race at the right time. I really don't feel like I earned the right to race at Worlds. The guys I was traveling with earned their slots, they are great athletes in tough age groups. I was never convinced of that on my part.
So it's sad, too bad, oh well. I have IMWI to prepare for, and if I had to pick between the two I'd pick IMWI.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Swim and Bike
SWIM: 3300yards in 1hr 20 mins. WU of 6x (100swim, 50kick), MS of 3x600 loco (1/1, 2/2, 3/3, 3/3, 2/2, 1/1) with 60s rest, and 8x50 as 50 easy/50 fast. CD of 200 easy.
BIKE: commuted in, but took longer route home: 8 miles in about 30 mins. Only counting the ride home. Not much, but I figure this Saturday will make up for it. I did this ride about 45mins after the swim with nothing to eat. I was so hungry by the time I got home I was nauseous.
I love loco swims, it's 1800y broken into 3 segments and each segment flies by. In fact, the last half of each loco is harder than the first since you want to breathe more in the easy laps.
More signs that you are training for an IM:
5. Your swim warm-up is longer than any workout you did years ago, and longer than any race distance that you ever thought you'd do.
6. You do crazy things "to prepare". Some examples: I purposefully inhale a little water then don't stop swimming to cough it up; I leave any water in my goggles to get used to water on my eyes; I let myself get hungry and tired before a workout to simulate "the race".
BIKE: commuted in, but took longer route home: 8 miles in about 30 mins. Only counting the ride home. Not much, but I figure this Saturday will make up for it. I did this ride about 45mins after the swim with nothing to eat. I was so hungry by the time I got home I was nauseous.
I love loco swims, it's 1800y broken into 3 segments and each segment flies by. In fact, the last half of each loco is harder than the first since you want to breathe more in the easy laps.
More signs that you are training for an IM:
5. Your swim warm-up is longer than any workout you did years ago, and longer than any race distance that you ever thought you'd do.
6. You do crazy things "to prepare". Some examples: I purposefully inhale a little water then don't stop swimming to cough it up; I leave any water in my goggles to get used to water on my eyes; I let myself get hungry and tired before a workout to simulate "the race".
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Missed workouts
Missed a 1hr 30min run and 1hr bike. Family came first. It's not that I have regrets, it's just that I'm frustrated that I couldn't get up earlier or plan the schedule over the previous week better to accomodate these workouts.
Funny enough though, when we got home to STL I was so tired that it was as if I had done the workouts!
Week summary: 9hrs 28 mins
SWIM:7301 yards in 3.08 hrs
BIKE: 69.30 miles in 3.87 hrs
RUN: 17 miles in 2.53 hrs
I'm happy that I kept the swimming up in a busy week.
Funny enough though, when we got home to STL I was so tired that it was as if I had done the workouts!
Week summary: 9hrs 28 mins
SWIM:7301 yards in 3.08 hrs
BIKE: 69.30 miles in 3.87 hrs
RUN: 17 miles in 2.53 hrs
I'm happy that I kept the swimming up in a busy week.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Home for the weekend
BIKE: 31 miles with Frea in 1:40. Planned the route so that I'd have the headwind on the outbound, during which I averaged only 16-17 mph. Tailwind on the way home, averaged 20-23+. I didn't feel tired until much later in the day, I'm always impressed at how much the wind can take out of you.
RUN: 4.5 miles with my sister in 50 mins, some walking but otherwise a very nice relaxed pace. I've been looking forward to this run!!
RUN: 4.5 miles with my sister in 50 mins, some walking but otherwise a very nice relaxed pace. I've been looking forward to this run!!
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